The National Soccer League of New York (also known as the National League of New York) was an amateur U.S. soccer league which served as a lower division for the de facto first division American Soccer League from the 1920s into the 1950s. The league began to decline in the second half of the twentieth century and was displaced by the German American Soccer League (GASL) as the dominant New York amateur league. In 1974, the NSL merged with the GASL.
Much of the early history of the league remains obscure. However, in 1928 an NSL select team played Scottish club Rangers F.C. in Brooklyn. Rangers won that game 8-2. In 1941, another NSL select team toured Haiti during which it played a team featuring future National Soccer Hall of Fame forward Joe Gaetjens. This led to him moving to the U.S. and subsequently scoring the winning goal in the U.S. victory over England in the 1950 FIFA World Cup. In 1974, the NSL merged with the German American Soccer League.
The American Basketball League (ABL) was an early professional basketball league. During six seasons from 1925–26 to 1930–31, the ABL was the first attempt to create a major professional basketball league in the United States. Joseph Carr, who was, in 1925, the president of the recently founded, three year old National Football League, organized the ABL from nine of the best independent pro teams from the East and the Midwest. George Halas of the NFL Chicago Bears was the owner of the Chicago Bruins, and department store magnate Max Rosenblum, a part owner of the NFL's Cleveland Bulldogs, financed the Cleveland Rosenblums. Future NFL owner George Preston Marshall, the owner of a chain of laundries, was owner of the Washington Palace Five. Other teams were the Boston Whirlwinds, Brooklyn Arcadians, Buffalo Bisons, Detroit Pulaski Post Five, Fort Wayne Caseys, and Rochester Centrals. With the exception of 1927–28, the ABL season was divided into two halves, with the winner of the first half playing the winner of the second half for the championship. Five games into the 1926–27 season, the Original Celtics were admitted to replace the Brooklyn franchise, and won 32 of the remaining 37 games, then shifted to New York the following season.
Adelino William "Billy" Gonsalves was an American soccer player, sometimes described as the "Babe Ruth of American Soccer". He spent over 25 years playing in various American professional leagues and was a member of the U.S. squad at the FIFA World Cup in 1930 and 1934. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame.
The Cosmopolitan Soccer League is a regional soccer league consisting of clubs based in and around New York City. Established in 1923, it is one of the oldest soccer leagues in the United States and has contributed greatly to the nation's soccer history.
Brooklyn Italians is an American soccer team based in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, United States. Founded in 1949, the team last played in the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL), a national amateur league at the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, in the Northeast Atlantic Division during its 2019 season.
Brooklyn Celtic was a name used by at least two U.S. football teams. The first was an early twentieth century amateur team which was formed in August 1910 and dominated the New York Amateur Association Football League from 1912 to 1917. The second was a member of the professional American Football League in the 1930s and early 1940s. A third Celtic club from Brooklyn, St. Mary's Celtic replaced the second club in the ASL before the 1935/36 season.
The National Association Football League (NAFBL) was a semi-professional U.S. soccer league which operated between 1895 and 1898. The league was reconstituted in 1906 and continued to operate until 1921.
Thomas Florie was an American soccer forward. He played in both the first and second American Soccer Leagues, winning two National Challenge Cup titles. Florie was also a member of the United States men's national soccer team at the 1930 and 1934 FIFA World Cup. He was inducted into the U.S. National Soccer Hall of Fame in 1986.
David "Davey" Brown was a former U.S. soccer forward. He spent most of his career playing for teams in New Jersey and New York, gaining his greatest fame with the New York Giants. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame.
George S. Athineos was a Greek-American football forward. He played professionally in Greece, the German American Soccer League and American Soccer League. He also earned one cap with the U.S. national team.
John "Jack or Jackie" Hynes was a Scottish-born American soccer forward. He spent over twenty years in the American Soccer League, twice earning league MVP recognition. In 1949, he earned four caps with the U.S. national team. In addition to playing professional soccer, Hynes was a New York City fireman from 1947 to 1975 and served in the U.S. Army in World War II. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame.
Werner "Scotty" Nilsen is a former Norwegian American soccer forward. He is one of the highest scoring players in U.S. soccer history, scoring 131 goals in 239 games with the Boston Soccer Club. He won five consecutive National Challenge Cups during his career, and four doubles. He also earned two caps with the United States in 1934, one at the 1934 FIFA World Cup. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame.
Lloyd Monsen is a retired American soccer forward and baseball pitcher. Monsen spent eleven seasons in the American Soccer League as well as several years in the lower division German American Soccer League and National Soccer League of New York. He earned three caps with the U.S. national team between 1952 and 1957 and was a member of the U.S. Olympic soccer teams at both the 1952 and 1956 Summer Olympics. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame.
Fabriciano “Fabri” Salcedo was a U.S. soccer forward. Salcedo spent thirteen seasons in the American Soccer League, leading the league in scoring three of those seasons, one season in the St. Louis Soccer League and part of one season in the National Soccer League of Chicago. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame.
The German American Soccer League(GASL) is the previous name of the Cosmopolitan Soccer League, a semi-professional and amateur soccer league which was founded in 1923. The league competes primarily in the New York metropolitan area and northern New Jersey.
Eugene A. "Gene" Olaff was an American soccer goalkeeper. He played in the National Soccer League of New York and the American Soccer League. Olaff also earned one cap with the United States in 1949. Prior to his death, he resided in Florence Township, New Jersey.
The National Soccer League (Chicago), formed by the merger of the Chicago Soccer League and International Soccer Football League of Chicago in 1928, is a semi-professional U.S. soccer league which is the oldest continuously operating soccer league in the United States.
John “Duke” or “Jukey” Nanoski was a former U.S. soccer center forward who spent most of his career in the American Soccer League. He led the league in scoring twice. He was one of only two players inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 1993, the other being Pelé.
George Barr was a US. soccer fullback who spent fifteen seasons in the American Soccer League. He was inducted to the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 1983.
Toronto Ukrainians is a Canadian soccer team. The club was founded on 30 June 1948 by Ukrainians that had been settled in the Toronto after second world war.
The American Soccer League has been a name used by four different professional soccer sports leagues in the United States. The first American Soccer League was established in 1921 by the merger of teams from the National Association Football League and the Southern New England Soccer League. For several years The ASL's popularity rivaled the popularity of the National Football League. Disputes with the United States Football Association and FIFA, and the onset of the Great Depression in 1929 led to the league's collapse in spring 1933.